The chicks receive a chick starter ration for 2 weeks. We endeavor to use medication-free, animal byproduct-free starter ration. Usually we succeed, but sometimes that is not available when we need it. In those situations we use a game bird starter that contains animal byproduct but no medications. At two weeks of age the birds are switched to a custom-blended feed containing corn, soybean meal, oats, and a vitamin/mineral mix. No medications or animal byproducts are in that custom blend.

Meat chickens are ready for processing at 7 to 8 weeks of age. Our chickens are inspected, processed, and frozen at Nelson-Shine Produce in Brainerd, MN. The weight of the finished, frozen whole chickens is in the 4.5- to 5.5-pound range.

Laying Hens

The laying hen flock is about 100 birds of varying ages. I raise a new batch of hen chicks every summer to replace hens that are growing too old to lay well. The breeds that I use are Black Australorp and Barred Rock. I like the Black Australorps because they are hardy and cold-tolerant, and continue to lay eggs right through our Minnesota winters.

Laying hens are fed a ration that I blend myself on the farm. It usually consists of locally grown oats or barley, locally grown peas, vitamin/mineral mix, and oyster shells (for calcium). It contains no animal byproducts or medications.

The hens live in large pens with hoop-house shelters. They are free to roam within those pens, and are never caged. Hen flocks rotate among pens. A flock will normally stay in one pen for two years; then that pen will be used for vegetable garden for a couple of years before rotating it back into chickens. The chickens eat all of the grass and weeds in their pen, scratch up and spread around the hay or straw used for bedding, and create a lovely, fertile garden soil.